Special School Committee Budget Meeting April 28 2009
Special School Committee Budget Meeting
April 28, 2009
The School Committee voted to accept the proposed budget (8 to 1) after the discussion and changes below regarding the budget updates of April 27th and April 28th.
Using the April 27th update (click here for a copy: April 27 Budget Update), the meeting went as follows:
Part IA (Items moved from the March proposed budget to the IDEA grant): SC reached consensus with no discussion.
Part IB (New programs/items covered by the IDEA grant): The only discussion was about the creation of the Post Secondary Transition Program to assist students ages 18 – 22. It focused on whether the School Committee (SC) wanted to add a new program that might not be sustainable beyond the two years of the IDEA grant. In the end the SC decided to keep the new program for a variety of reasons, including the idea that at least there would be a structure set up for the future; that a program like this is part of a new mandate; and that Newton still has a responsibility to these students until they are 22.
Part II (Additions to FY10 Budget): There was a great deal of discussion about the balance between the addition of new staff positions and the purchase of “stuff,” which included science and music equipment, as well as textbooks and an increase in the per pupil allocation. In the end, there was a majority in favor of keeping the balance as proposed.
Part III (Reserve Funds): There were two options presented tonight (neither are up on the website yet) regarding $750K to be kept in reserve until State funding is finalized. The reason behind the reserve fund are the potential cuts to the circuit breaker, which funds extraordinary expenses related to children with special needs. Each option represents line items that will not be allocated until enough funding is secure. Option A is heavier on the “stuff” side—including $215K for a feasibility study for work at Angier, Carr, and Cabot, and $97K to be held in reserve for additional special education expenses. Option B is heavier on the FTE side, where funding for 5 teachers would be held in reserve.
Discussion centered on whether or not to include the feasibility study and whether or not to keep the $97K for special education reserve. Most of the SC members felt comfortable keeping the feasibility study, but opted to shift the $97K from special education reserve to equipment reserve, which could cover a variety of needs in science, music and textbooks.
Post-Vote: Geoff Epstein, who voted against the budget, said that he voted as he did because the feasibility study was added into the budget process at the end. Other SC members felt that it was fine to add in budget items during the process if they felt they were missing. In addition, the SC has been waiting for funding for the study since last year.
This budget will be presented to the Board of Aldermen tomorrow (Wednesday) night, at approximately 8:30 p.m.